Today we’re going to focus in on Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight,”

References to Bible Verses:

Proverbs 3:5-6; Psalm 28:7; Isaiah 26:3; Mark 12:30; Isaiah 55:8–9; 1 Corinthians 1:25; James 1:5; Romans 12:1–2; Psalm 37:5; Colossians 3:17; Psalm 32:8; Psalm 119:105; John 14:6; Psalm 143:8

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Introduction

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Do I take the pay cut for better working conditions? I think we've all had to face tough life choices at some point or another, but when you do. Do you seek God's counsel? What if he tells you to do something that defies logic and reason as you know it? What then?

Trusting God in All Circumstances

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Jason: Today we're gonna focus on Proverbs three, verses five and six.

I. So let's dive into this and see where the Lord leads us today.

Personal Reflections on Trust

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Jason: As I was preparing for this episode, I found myself asking how much of my own life I trust God to manage, and to be perfectly honest, I really do try to give him everything, but I'm not sure I'm always successful. I say this because I want you to know that when I go through the contents of this episode that I've prepared, I see areas of my own life where I can do better.

When we do, our Lord rejoices in our progress. So stop looking at where you think you're failing and just focus on giving a little bit more tomorrow than you did today. One day we might get it right, maybe, I don't know. He, he definitely wants us to, but he's a kind and loving God and he knows we struggle.

So as we're going into this, as you're listening to this episode, give yourself some grace.

Understanding Complete Surrender

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Jason: So let's start with the very first part of Proverbs three verse five. Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Now that word all is deceptively simple, but, but deeply challenging, not just some trust, not half hearted belief, not selective trust.

It's not leaning halfway on a crutch, while still putting pressure on your own broken legs. It's placing everything, your fears, your plans, your hopes, your identity, everything fully into God's hands with without reservation. Matthew Henry goes on to echo. When he says, faith is leaning the whole weight of our soul upon God, the whole weight.

I mean, think about that. There's a vulnerability in that kind of trust, huge vulnerability. It, it's the kind of trust that says, Lord, if you don't catch me, I'm just gonna fall. So here's the question I want to kind of leave you with today. Well, maybe we'll start with and we'll go somewhere else with it. I don't know.

Challenges in Trusting God

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Or maybe it's your future where you want to cont. You want control, you want clarity. You want certainty, but God seems kind of quiet on that and you're tempted to just take the wheel back. Psalm 28 verse seven reminds us, the Lord is my strength and my shield. My heart trusts in him and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song, I praise him.

Those whose minds are steadfast because they trust in you. Wow. Perfect piece. I mean, isn't that what we're longing for in, in, in our chaos? Not just temporary relief, but a piece that. Anchors us through every storm. That piece comes not from understanding everything, but from trusting the one who does. I mean, Jesus reinforces this in Mark 12, verse 30, when he said, love your Lord God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength, the same word, all the same invitation, everything.

Let your trust be real, visible and full. The God you're trusting. He's not distant, he's not uncertain. He's your strength and shield, your peace and your first love. And when you trust him with all your heart, you're not just leaning, you're finally resting.

Leaning Not on Your Own Understanding

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Jason: So speaking of leaning, let's be honest for a moment, leaning on our own understanding.

The last part of Proverbs three, verse five tells us plainly, ly not on your own understanding. Now, why would scripture give us this instruction? Our understanding as smart, experienced, or intuitive as we may be, it's pretty limited. It's shaped by personal history, human emotion. Partial information is sometimes plain old fear.

And yet, how often do we still try to solve spiritual problems with human logic? Again, I'm gonna go back to David Guzzi. He puts it this way. God's way often transcends our comprehension. I'm gonna read that again. God's way often transcends our comprehension. Now, that's not a dig at our intelligence. It's a reminder that God sees the entire picture.

And Henry's warning is clear. When we lean on human understanding alone, we're trusting something that's, well, it's, it's inherently unstable. Think of a broken crutch. Let's go back to the crutch for a moment. It might hold you up for a few steps, but it's only a matter of time before it'll, it'll collapse into the pressure and you're, you're headed down.

That's what leaning on your own understanding can can be like It's gives us the illusion of stability. We got a crutch. It's working, but it can't carry the full weight of our lives, our burdens, or our future for very long. And scripture reinforces this truth with Hu humility and grace. In Isaiah 55 verses eight nine, it tells us.

And when that happens, how do you respond? Do you freeze? Do you doubt? Do you delay or do you lean harder into him even when the map doesn't make any sense? Let's be clear. This isn't about blind faith. It's about humble faith, a faith that recognizes that even at our best, our insights are too small to grasp God's bigger plan.

That's the moment your trust is gonna be tested and God doesn't leave you alone in that moment. James one verse five offers this incredible promise. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. I'm admit all the classics on the scripture today, you guys are gonna love this.

You don't have to figure it all out. You're not expected to have every answer, but you are invited to ask, to seek to listen, and to learn. Not on yourself, but on the unshakeable wisdom of God. So here's, here's something to reflect on for this part of the, the podcast. When God's direction challenges your logic, how are you gonna respond?

He always wins anyways. The challenge isn't to stop thinking. It's to stop leaning on that thinking. When it's in conflict with God's word or his spirit's leading, God isn't asking you to abandon your understanding. He's asking you to surrender its throne, because the truth is when we stop leaning on our own understanding, we finally start walking in His.

So now we're gonna move on to Proverbs three, verse six.

Submitting to God's Will

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Jason: We're gonna go to the first part of Proverbs three, verse six. And when we read the words from this in all your ways, submit to him. We're hearing more than a suggestion. We're hearing a radical invitation to surrender, not just to trust God generally or occasionally, but to submit every part of life under his authority.

We submit our spiritual side, our prayers, our worship, but we hold back in our careers and our relationship and our goals. We make decisions based on what seems smart, strategic, or socially acceptable, and then ask God to bless it afterwards. But the verse says, in all your ways, that means the way you speak to your family, the way you treat your coworkers, the way you spend your time, your money, your energy, even the way you process, disappointment, ambition, and dreams.

I told you guys, I'm hitting all the, I'm hitting all the highlights today, all the good verses today, but did you catch that progression there? Submit precedes revelation. Only when we offer our whole lives to God, are we able to clearly discern his will. This is what many of us wrestle with. We say, God, show me your will, but we're unwilling to lay down our own.

We want the map before we surrender the steering wheel. But here's the good news. If we sincerely desire to know God's will and we surrender our own, he will direct us. Psalm 37, 5 promises this. Commit your way to the Lord. Trust in him and he will do this. It's not vague hope. It's a solid guarantee rooted in the character of a faithful God.

It can be worship when it's surrendered to him. That's the heart of submission, recognizing that Jesus isn't just savior, he's Lord, and therefore has authority over every part of our lives. So here's what I want you to consider. Do you compartmentalize your faith or does it truly cover every decision?

So maybe today's that day to stop dividing sacred and secular. Maybe today's the day you say, Lord, in all my ways, in everything I submit to you, because when your whole life is in his hands. Your whole path starts to make sense. But are you ready?

God's Guidance and Straight Paths

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Jason: Here comes a good part because we're gonna talk about paths because honestly, life can feel like a maze.

Twists, detours, wrong turns. Sometimes you're unsure whether you're even on the right path. You, you pray, you plan, you try to follow Jesus. But decisions get complicated, doubts creep in, and that's exactly where this promise speaks most powerfully. The second part of Proverbs three, verse six. He will make your paths straight.

Doesn't mean it won't be a little twisty, turny, but it's gonna be his path. God doesn't merely point to the road. He goes ahead of us and and prepares it. He levels the ground beneath our feet. He closes doors we shouldn't walk through and opens doors we wouldn't have found on our own. Psalm 32 verse eight.

Psalm one 19 verse 1 0 5 puts it like this. Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. I want you to think about that image for a minute, a lamp at your feet. It doesn't illuminate the whole highway or everything around you. It just gives you enough light for the next step, and, and that's how God's gonna lead us step by step, not mile by mile, he.

Teaches us to walk by faith, not by sight. And Jesus, he's not the, not just the one who leads the way, he is the way. John 14, six, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. So when Proverbs says He will make your paths straight, it's not simply talking about smoother circumstances, it's about walking in step with Jesus himself, the way who leads us to truth and life.

And often it looks like correction, a reduc redirection when you've veered off course not in anger, but in love, like a GPS kind of recalculating your root. Not to punish you, but to get you back to where you were meant to be. That the beautiful thing is this. When you walk with God, even your detours can be part of the direction.

Remember, the promises proceeded by trust and surrender promise is proceeded by trust. Surrender. When you trust in the Lord with all your heart, when you stop leaning on your own understanding, when you submit in all your ways, he will make your paths straight. It doesn't mean it's gonna be quick. It doesn't mean it's gonna be easy, but, but sure purposeful fil because the one clearing your path is also the one walking it with you.

This passage gently and sometimes firmly redirects us. Do not lean on your own understanding. Instead in every way in your schedule, your marriage, your parenting, your finances, your friendships, everything, submit to him, acknowledge him, invite him in.

Final Thoughts

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Jason: And here's what I want to challenge you with this week.

Another challenge. I know there's a lot in this one, right? Another challenge. First time, take time to slowly and prayerfully read. Proverbs three verses five and six each day, every day this week. Don't rush it. Let it settle into your soul. Ask God what all your heart looks like in your life. Second, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal one specific area where you're still leaning on your own understanding.

Psalm 1 43 verse eight. Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go. For to you, I entrust my life. Let that be your heartbeat this week, a prayer that rises with the sun. Lord, I trust you. Lead me.

So this episode being ended up being a little shorter than I expected, but check this out.

Starting next week, I'm launching a brand new series entitled Kingdom Living, where we're gonna dive into the sermon on the mound, A powerful message from Jesus that might revolutionize your understanding of kingdom citizenship. Scratch that, it will revolutionize your understanding of kingdom citizenship.